VfL Osnabrück, which has been relegated from the 2nd Bundesliga since Tuesday, can play the last game of the season on May 19th against Hertha BSC in the last closed stadium on the Bremer Bridge.
As the club announced on Wednesday evening, the arena has been partially released. Except for the east curve, which remains closed to spectators, the entire stadium can be used against Hertha on Sunday (3:30 p.m., in the NDR Livecenter).
“The stability was confirmed by the city of Osnabrück as the responsible authority on Wednesday and the playing field, the interior, the west curve as well as the south and north stands of the bridge have been released for use again.”
— Announcement from VfL Osnabrück
Welling: “We are very happy about it”
“We are very happy that we could already play with three stands and spectators on the bridge today. At the same time, we are continuing to do everything we can to implement the further necessary measures so that the east curve can also be opened to spectators,” said the commercial director Michael Welling. “As of today, that remains a very, very ambitious goal.”
Structural defects in the roof structure
The responsible authorities in the city of Osnabrück banned the use of the stadium at the end of April due to structural defects in the roof structure. The home game against FC Schalke 04, originally scheduled for last Saturday, was played on Tuesday without spectators at Hamburg’s Millerntor. VfL lost 4-0 and has since become the first relegated team.
According to VfL, the rotten glued beams in the stadium roof have been secured by installed support pillars since Friday. The club announced that the expert calculations were now available and were finally checked by the city.
Work on the roof of the east curve is going on “at full speed”
In order for the east curve to be reopened, the stadium roof must be dismantled. “The service providers involved are working hard on this.” The aim is to have the roof of the east stand removed in a timely manner, the necessary scaffolding dismantled and the statics calculated by an expert and checked by the city.
“Especially after a bitter relegation, it is outstanding how motivated everyone involved is. Every day will make it clearer whether we will be able to achieve our goals,” said Welling. “We are keeping everyone, especially our fans with tickets for the Ostkurve, informed. However, a final decision is not expected before the end of next week.”
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Hello Lower Saxony | May 8, 2024 | 19:30 o’clock
